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Preconference Events

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Want to get a head start on your NatCon24 learning journey? Take advantage of our pre-event program, designed to help you strengthen your skill sets and service delivery.



Multi-day Special Events | April 2024


Whole Health Action Management (WHAM) - $450
      Saturday, April 13 and Sunday, April 14, 2024

Whole Health Action Management (WHAM) is a peer-led training program designed to support people living with chronic physical conditions and mental health and substance use challenges. WHAM promotes self-management to create and sustain new health behaviors while empowering peer providers to support the whole health of their clients. For just $450, peer specialists can attend the WHAM training at NatCon24.
 
WHAM registration includes: 

For questions on WHAM, please contact Kim Murray.



Middle Management Academy (MMA) - $1,550
      Wednesday, April 10 through Saturday, April 13, 2024

Middle Management Academy (MMA) is the only program of its kind to develop future health care leaders into strong links in the management chain. They learn the skills to engage staff, improve performance and fulfill their role as influential front-line leaders. The MMA blends best-in-class management and supervision tools with experiential learning customized for behavioral health and health care managers and leaders.

Participants explore real-world questions that inspire insight into their own management strengths and help resolve thorny supervision challenges. The curriculum emphasizes learning and applying skills related to employee engagement, staff supervision, change management, diversity/equity/inclusion, healthy conflict, teamwork and trust.

For questions on MMA, please contact Kim Murray.





Mental Health First Aid (MHFA) Instructor Certification Training
Thursday, April 11 to Saturday, April 13, 2024

Adult and Youth MHFA Instructor Certification Trainings

Interested in becoming an Adult or Youth MHFA Instructor? Join us for an Adult MHFA or Youth MHFA Instructor training course! Please note: You must first be certified as a First Aider in the respective curriculum to participate in a training. Instructor certification results from a three-day training that presents the MHFA course and provides in-depth instruction on facilitating the curriculum. The training includes self-paced pre-work and a presentation that evaluates each candidate’s ability to present the MHFA course to a variety of audiences.

Apply today to become a MHFA Instructor!

Members: $2,000* | Non-members: $2,200*

*Instructors already certified as Adult, Youth or teen Instructors receive a $200 discount when registering for another Instructor certification training.



Preconference Universities
Full-day 9:00 a.m. - 5 p.m. CT | Sunday, April 14, 2024

*Lunch is included for each session

Integrated Care Bootcamp

Improve upon your organization’s integrated care journey with our full day preconference university that will include information on concepts of integrated health, models of care, financing integration, how to be culturally responsive and collecting and utilizing data. You’ll hear from leading experts from National Council’s Center of Excellence for Integrated Health Solutions and engage in dialogue about achieving success by enhancing wellness services for people living with complex health conditions and innovative strategies in integration.

Members: $425 | Non-members: $475


Crisis Response Services Summit

The National Council for Mental Wellbeing is excited to announce our second Crisis Response Services Summit as one of our NatCon24 Preconference Universities in St. Louis! Building on our successes from last year’s inaugural summit at NatCon23, the National Council is once again bringing together renowned national thought leaders for presentations from across the crisis continuum. This year we also have expanded spaces for networking, making connections and coming together to share ideas and tackle shared problems across the crisis continuum.  Hurry, as space is limited and we expect to sell out again for this exciting event, register today!

Members: $425 | Non-members: $475


Cultivating and Retaining a Successful Peer Workforce

If your organization has just started hiring peer workers (peer specialists, peer recovery specialists or community health workers)---or have had them for a while but feel like you could be more successful---this preconference is for you.  This day-long session will explore the core elements of building an effective, comprehensive peer support program, from assessing your internal readiness to crafting policies and procedures that align with peer practice. It will also focus on appropriate, strengths-based supervision of peer practice and other strategies that will help you to retain your peer workforce.  You will learn from experts and leave with tools and resources that you can immediately put into practice. 

Members: $425 | Non-members: $475


Trauma-Informed Motivational Interviewing (TIMI) Training

Helping clients thrive regardless of a mental health or substance use challenge is not only part of the National Council’s mission, it also aligns with the spirit of Motivational Interviewing (MI)! Blending MI with the ground-breaking research of the Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs) Study, brain-based health, and key concepts of Trauma-Informed (TI) approaches, this full-day training combines evidence-based principles of TIMI to sharpen client engagement skills and enable connection and understanding to advance health and wellness. A key feature of this training is the parallel process of individual skill-building and developing organizational implementation strategies. With the combined strength of TIMI we have a real and impactful opportunity to meet people where they are, while supporting their resilience and readiness toward decision-making, growth, and change!

Members: $425 | Non-members: $475



Preconference Universities
PM Half-day 1:00 p.m. - 5 p.m. CT | Sunday, April 14, 2024

SAMHSA CCBHC Expansion (CCBHC-E)  Preconference Convening

Current CCBHC expansion grantees are invited to join us for an in-person convening through the CCBHC-Expansion Grantee National Training and Technical Assistance Center. There is no cost to attend. Registration for NatCon24 is not required to attend. This workshop will showcase Certified Community Behavioral Health Clinic (CCBHC) implementation best practices and provide opportunities for peer-to-peer engagement with other CCBHCs. Attendees will learn from other grantees and make connections to increase CCBHC innovations and sustainability. This convening is open to current CCBHC Expansion Grantees (including PDI and IA Grantees) only. Up to two (2) staff members from each CCBHC are invited to attend. If others from your organization are interested in attending, you may add their names to the waitlist. Please enter the registration code from your email invitation to complete your registration.

For questions about the SAMHSA CCBHC Expansion (CCBHC-E)  Preconference Convening, contact Clement Nsiah.



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